But this boxing match does not involve bulbous gloves, fancy footwork or trading ugly looks. Combatants, instead, are armed with hard-boiled, multi-coloured eggs, and lots of laughter. Welcome to `Oiaboxn,’ well, that’s Bavarian for Egg Boxing, a favourite during Easter celebrations in the south German region.
The rules are simple, non-existent, in fact. ``Whoever cracks the opponent’s egg wins,’’ explains Tobias Hartmann, who is happily lapping up the bouts on his camera.
Egg Boxing was the star event at this year’s Easter celebrations organised by the city’s Goethe-Zentrum Max Mueller Bhavan. “The eggs are simple to make. You paint them with edible colours, then boil for 8-10 minutes,’’ Hartmann, who takes German classes during the summer vacation programmes at the centre, says.
But first, you have to find the eggs. So you chant: ``Hey ho! Such die Nester auf/denn derhase hoppelt ubers land/bringt die bunten Eier/Hey ho! Such die Nester auf!’’ A rough translation goes something like this: Find out the rabbit’s lair, the rabbit, hopping around, has hidden the eggs; find and bring the colourful eggs.
The eggs are hidden all over the centre. There’s a mad scramble at the word go. “This year, we hid over 40 eggs,’’ says Syed Ibrahim, director of Goethe-Zentrum Max Mueller Bhavan.
The Easter celebrations began with the traditional breaking of the bread. A priest, presiding over a table on which are placed loaves of bread, salt and egg, delivers a brief lecture on the importance of Easter. After that, everyone goes off to hunt for the easter eggs.
Hartmann is nostalgic. ``In Bavaria, we start early, at five in the morning, with the Easter fire in front of the Church. Then there is the blessing of the bread, egg and salt. You take it home to share it with the family. After that, there are the games in the garden.
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The New Indian Express
